New Callery plans clear hurdle

Panel backs scaled-down development of 2,996 homes

March 29, 2008|By Andy Reid Staff Writer

Callery-Judge Grove owners once pledged to build the answer to urban sprawl - a "new town" where residents could live, work and shop without a long commute.

Now, almost a year after Palm Beach County commissioners rejected the 10,000-home proposal, Callery-Judge Grove is back with a scaled-down plan that seeks to skate under thresholds that trigger tougher development requirements.

It relies on political muscle in the state Legislature to help overrule local opposition from those who worry about opening more agricultural land west of Wellington and Royal Palm Beach to suburban development.

Despite those concerns, the Palm Beach County Planning Commission on Friday recommended approval for changing development guidelines to allow 2,996 homes on 4,000 acres surrounded by The Acreage and Loxahatchee Groves. The plan, which also includes 235,000 square feet of commercial and office space, goes before the county commission on April 28.

By proposing less than 3,000 homes, Callery-Judge Grove avoids facing tougher development standards that would require more costly road improvements to address traffic concerns.

In addition, they are proposing the plan under the state's new "Agricultural Enclave" rules - legislation Callery-Judge owners pushed that makes it easier to build on farms that are at least 75 percent surrounded by neighborhoods.

After going to the county commission in April, the Callery-Judge proposal undergoes a review by the state Department of Community Affairs and then comes back to the county commission for another vote.

The new building plan may be "more palatable" than 10,000 homes, but it still dwarfs the 372 homes now allowed on the property and sets a precedent for development of more western agricultural land, Loxahatchee community activist Nancy Gribble said.

"It's like an entitlement and I don't understand this mentality," Gribble said. "It has huge implications for what the rest of the community is going to look like."

Callery-Judge Grove owners once envisioned transforming the land they farmed for 40 years into a mix of neighborhoods, businesses and a Main Street-style town center. Along with 10,000 homes, the previous plans called for 4 million square feet of space for office, industrial and retail development with a college campus, hotel rooms and golf course.

Under the new plan, Callery-Judge Grove would mirror the development rate in The Acreage, allowing 1 home per 1.25 acres.

It calls for grove land west of Seminole Pratt Whitney Road to be limited to large, multi-acre properties described as "horse hamlets" with room for pastures, equestrian facilities and other small-scale agriculture.

Land east of Seminole Pratt Whitney Road would include more suburban style development, with homes clustered together on smaller lots. A "village center" with shops, restaurants and offices is planned along Seminole Pratt, with another proposed if needed along Persimmon Boulevard.

Widening portions of Southern Boulevard and Persimmon were two of the big road improvements in the current Callery-Judge proposal.

Opponents of the plan have raised concerns about traffic implications and questioned counting roads and equestrian facilities as "natural areas."

"What they are proposing is more large-lot sprawl," said Joanne Davis, of the growth watchdog group 1,000 Friends of Florida.

Planning Commissioner Sam Shannon, one of the three-members of the appointed advisory board to vote against the plan on Friday, questioned the lack of detail offered for road plans and building designs.

State law limits the county's options.

In 2006, the Legislature approved a law guaranteeing that agricultural land of a certain size can be developed at the same rate as surrounding neighborhoods.

Changes to that law are being considered by the Legislature this spring to clarify the rules and make it easier for agricultural landowners to appeal local land-use decisions, said state Sen. Carey Baker, R-Eustis, who sponsored the new measure.

Baker described Callery-Judge as the "poster child" for the agricultural enclave law, which he said helps preserve property rights.

"It's just a matter of fairness," Baker said. "That land should be allowed to develop at whatever the average density of the surrounding property."

The result, however, means fewer requirements for addressing road and school crowding when it comes to development of large agricultural land, said Planning Commissioner Katharine Murray, who voted against the Callery-Judge plan.